The Ecuadoran government declared a state of emergency in the northeastern province of Napo, after violent protesters seized an oil pumping station late Tuesday.

Under the state of emergency, public protests and marches are forbidden.

Jose Modesto Apolo, the Minister of Public Administration, said Ecuador wants to protect the public and prevent further sabotage of the petroleum industry, following the injuries of three people during the protest on Wednesday.

Napo residents demand that the government should invest hundreds of millions of dollars in their local communities to build roads, bridges and an airport. Apolo said that he would consider speaking to the demonstrators if they leave the pumping station.

The oil pipeline is run by a consortium of major foreign oil companies operating in Ecuador which includes Canada's Encana, Spain's Repsol YPF, Brazil's Petrobras, the United States's Occidental Oil, France's Perenco and Italy's Afyp.

The 300-mile (485 km) pipeline has the capacity to transport 450,000 barrels of crude per day (bpd) from the Amazon region to a Pacific coast port.

Source: Xinhua